Assassin Shinigami
by The three quarter demon
Summary: Three years after Al Mualim's death, Altair has taken on a student and is continuing to pursue the Templars. While on a mission, a betrayal leads to his death. Now he moved on to the Soul Society. What will he do? What he does best; kill.
1. Chapter 1

Was playing Assassin's Creed and thought this up. I'm just seeing what response it will get for now.

xxxxxx

Altair looked down on the city from the view point he had found near the entrance. He watched the guards walk the streets and to and from the castle that held his target. Ever since he killed Al Mualim three years ago he had taken over the Brotherhood he had taken on a student that reminded him from when he was a student. Bold, brave, confident, and skilled; however he did have his faults like arrogance, ignorance, and being too eager to make the kill. He looked down and saw his student finally making it three quarters of the way up. Just the year before, the boy took three times as long to get to where he was now; he learned fast and became stronger.

"Master Altair;" the boy said as he took a deep breath "why must we waste our time by doing this? Would it not be easier, simpler, and faster to simply sneak in through the top of the castle and kill the bastard in his sleep?"

The Head of the Brotherhood let out a sigh. This is the reason he doesn't trust his student to kill a target on his own; he's too focused on just killing the target and being done with it. The boy followed the Creed, but lacked patience; he has tried to fix that by having the boy meditate, but that hasn't worked. That was the reason he hasn't promoted the boy above Novice; it was patience that allowed the Assassins before him to advance and it will be patience that will let him advance.

"What do you know about this man? When will we strike? How do you plan to get into and out of the castle? You know nothing about the target and it could cost you more than being stuck as a Novice."

"He is a glutton that forces the people in this city to starve while he is fat and goriest; even his own servants fear taking a bite to eat from his plate and have grown thin and fragile."

"Your ignorance will cost you our life" Altair warned "what of his guards? How many archers does he have employed; does he have Templars amongst his ranks; when are there openings in patrols? These are only the basic things you must know to make a proper kill and escape. Knowledge is the greatest weapon an Assassin has, but first you must obtain it;" without looking at his student "or are you fearful that you cannot obtain simple knowledge?"

"I FEAR NOTHING!" the student shouted.

His master knew this and always questioned his bravery when a new mission came up. Every time he gave the same answer and his master gave the same response.

"Then prove it;" as he held his hand out pointing to the edge of the tower "take the leap and meet me at the Bureau in four hours with everything you have learned. If I feel you have learned enough, we shall go make the kill."

The boy didn't hesitate to take a running jump from the roof and land in a large hay stack that was next to a horse stall. Altair had a bad feeling about this mission, but he brushed it off as he went to meet with the informants he sent a week ahead of him. Blending into the crowds, he made his way to the Bureau where he would meet with his informants. The guards appeared to be far more alert than he hoped; they were very suspicious of everyone in the streets, and focused on him more.

He climbed the roof to the Bureau and jumped in. His three informants already there talking amongst themselves about how to test Altair's student; one had already staked claim on using the flag excuse and aggravated his brothers. That only left one more to use, the infamous 'I was tracking the target and two of his guards saw my face' trick; while that was easy to pull off, it would mean that one of the tests would have to be used again which could cause suspicion from his student. The bickering was starting to annoy the keeper behind the desk and it showed as he rubbed his temples. This was the first time three informants had been used on one target, but Altair saw this as necessary to test his student.

"Safety and Peace Brothers;" Altair said as he entered.

"Safety and Peace; Master Altair" the four men said back.

"Tell me what you have learned about our target."

"While I was observing his castle" the first informant began "I noticed that an archer on the west most corner has fallen asleep everyday that I have observed the place. His shift is from three to nine in the morning; after the first hour is when he begins to nod off, that will be the perfect time to sneak by him, or you can wait till he falls asleep and slit his throat then."

"Very well," Altair said "go to your post and await my student."

"The glutinous noble always has the food deliveries stopped before they enter the city;" the second said "it is from the same farm north of here and it would prove difficult to poison the food without drawing suspicion seeing how his servants have many guards with them at the time. However, the food is loaded onto a second wagon; I myself have seen the bottom of the wagon, you can hold yourself up on it and use poisoned daggers to contaminate the food."

"That could cause an innocent to be killed; however, we can use the wagon to gain entrance to the castle;" Altair said bluntly "is there anything more useful you have learned?"

"There is one pastry that he has killed a servant for touching;" he continued "it would be safe to assume that you should poison that to slay this man. The kitchen is on the west side of the castle and the window is always open due to the heat; slipping in, poisoning the pastry and slipping back out shouldn't be a problem for your skill level Master Altair."

"Be sure to be specific about which pastry when you tell my student this information."

With that the informant bowed and left.

"Here is what I have learned;" the last informant began "because the castle is next to a river, there is a small stream that runs from west to east through the court yard. If you hold your breath long enough, you can make it all the way across without being spotted. Once on the east side of the court yard, there is a grate in the water that is rusting away and should be easy to remove…"

"I assume you tested it" cutting him off.

"Of course, Master Altair; when you have the grate removed you will be in the horse stables. There is a rose bush that grows from the ground all the way up to the noble's room, who happens to leave his window open except when it gets cold, or rains."

"Good, now we can poison his pastry and make sure that he is dead. Pass the information on to my student after he passes your test."

Altair looked at the keeper of the Bureau, who had been in thought ever since the second informant left.

"What is on your mind Brother?" Altair asked.

"I find it odd that Kesif knew about the servant getting killed over a pastry, but failed to mention a path into the castle."

"Yes, that is peculiar" he agreed "but we must trust his information and ensure this glutton's death. I have information that shows he is connected to the Templars and their attempts to enlarge their forces. He starves the people, and then the Templars come and offer them a way to get stronger and food; when facing starvation, servitude doesn't sound so bad."

The keeper nodded and went back to copying the book he was employed to copy. That was the cover of every Bureau throughout the lands; it was a simple thing to do, made good profits, and, best of all, it took time which meant that the Bureau was empty most of the time. Whenever there was a customer in the Bureau, it was easy to pass off an Assassin as just another customer coming to pick up a book, or scroll, that had been paid for in advance. Most of the time it was a scroll that had important information in it, as well as a white feather to use to collect some of the target's blood as proof of death.

Altair spent the next three and a half hours meditating on what his informants learned and devising a plan to get in and out. They would use the wagon to get into the castle and close to the kitchen. From there they will slip through the opened window of the kitchen, poison the pastry, and slip out towards the river. When night approached, they would use the stream to get into the horse stables and climb the rose bush to confirm the kill. From there, they can slip pass the sleeping archer on the west corner of the castle.

As the fourth hour approached, Altair waited for his student to return; only as the time approached, his student didn't. The feeling he had earlier was starting to return, and this time he couldn't just brush it off; not after what the keeper said about Kesif. Something was wrong, and he knew it. He got up, left the Bureau the same way he entered, and jumped down into the streets to head to the castle. There were fewer guards walking the streets now; it wasn't time for a shift change, which was still two hours away, so what was going on?

"Wonderful day for a walk, isn't it?" Altair asked one of his informants.

"Not as good as last week" he replied.

"Has my student come by you yet?"

"No," he replied with concern "he has yet to return to you?"

"Yes;" the master assassin said "he should have come to see you by now…"

Just then, a bell started to sound from the castle. Both Altair's and the informant's eyes widened; they knew what that meant, an intruder in the castle. Altair took off to the castle to save his student; he jumped up the side of the closest building and landed on the roof before taking off again. An archer guard started to reach for an arrow when he saw the white cloaked man running towards him, but was too slow and was greeted by the extension blade on Altair's wrist; as soon as the master assassin retracted the blade, he was in a full sprint in a matter of milliseconds.

He jumped from the roof to the wall surrounding the castle and took out the guard as he landed. As he ran he threw two knives simultaneously and killed an archer and a normal guard. The two bodies fell to the ground below and startled the group of guards on break. There was an opened window to his left that was about five feet lower than the wall he was on; taking the opening, he jumped into the window, rolled to control his impact, and used his throwing knives to kill a guard that had walked out of a room. By time the guard hit the ground, the master assassin was running to locate his student and retreat. He saw an opened door that led to a massive room and his student standing over a dead guard.

"Master Altair?" with a confused tone "Kesif said that you wanted to test me to see if I could handle this on my own."

Altair filled with anger; the keeper was right about Kesif, while he himself was blind. Their supposed Brother had betrayed them and now they had to evacuate from the city.

"We must retreat," Altair said "we have been betrayed" as he turned to see three squads of Templars run down the stairs around them "back to back" he ordered as he drew his short sword for himself and tossed his student his long sword.

Altair used his bracer to deflect a sword and then used his own to slit the Templar's throat just underneath the helmet. He heard the tell-tale noise of chainmail being split apart just before there was a heavy thump on the stone floor. The Master Assassin threw three knives at once and killed two more Templars while injuring the arm that held the sword of a third. That was all they needed for an opening to be created, and they ran down the hall to the large glass window; the master assassin threw four knives and shattered it. The master and student saw the top of the wall and quickened their pace so they could make the jump. The two jumped out the window and made it to the wall; Altair noticed the archers already positioned on the roof of the castle aiming down at them.

"DON'T STOP!" he shouted at his student as he grabbed him and continued running.

They headed to the western end of the castle so they could make their escape into the river. The river was their safest route out of the city; their only route now that word of their presence had spread to the gate. Three guards climbed the ladder that was fifty feet from their target edge and started shooting arrows at them. Altair took one to the right side of his chest just beside his holster for his short sword; that didn't slow him down though. The master assassin pulled the last two throwing knives he had left, threw them at two of the guards, killing them, and used his extension blade to kill the third.

"Jump into the river!" he ordered his student as he got up.

His student did as he was ordered and jumped from the edge into the water below. Altair began his run again, but took another arrow in the back right next to his shoulder blade. He did his best to continue, but felt extremely weakened now thanks to the blood loss. As he leapt from the roof, three more arrows struck him; one through his right lung, another his right forearm, and the third next to his heart. The arrows were enough to throw off his body from the proper position to land in the water; when he hit it, he felt like he just jumped from five stories into nothing but the hard street. The pain caused him to black out.

"MASTER ALTAIR! MASTER ALTAIR!" he heard as he slowly regained consciousness.

"I'm over here" he called out as he picked himself up off the rocky shore he drifted to.

"MASTER ALTAIR!" he heard again.

"Do you still have water in your ears?" Altair snapped at his student.

His student stopped running and fell to his knees for some reason with tears running down his face.

"Master Altair…" with a harsh voice "please, forgive me;" as even more tears followed.

"I'm still alive, now help me with these arrows;" as he pulled the one in his forearm out and winced in pain "I gave you an order!"

His student only crawled on the rocky shore pass him, tears dripping onto the ground with each step he took.

"I'm sorry Master Altair;" as sobs started "I failed to be patient as you told me and it cost you your life. I believed you had faith in my abilities and failed to see that it was a trap. I failed you as a student my Master; please forgive me."

Altair's eyes widened as he looked at the body on the rocky beach where he had just pulled himself up from; it was his own. He looked down at his chest and saw a chain attached to it; he slowly reached for it, but was stopped by a hand.

"That would be most unwise" the person said in a strong voice.

The master assassin looked at the source of the voice and saw an old man that was bald, had a long white beard that went down his front, and had an X scar on his forehead. He was dressed in an unusual black outfit and held a wooden cane in his hand.

"Should you remove your Chain of Fate you will become a Hollow" he said.

"What in God's name is a 'hollow', who are you, and why can't my student hear us?"

"You are dead; assassin" he explained "you must move on to the Soul Society, or you will become a Hollow and I will be forced to slay you."

"Strong words coming from such an old man" Altair said as he drew his short sword.

"That would be most unwise;" as he looked unfazed "now I must perform a Konso. Should you stay in the world of the living, you will become a Hollow and kill countless innocent. Is that what you wish assassin?"

Altair looked at his student; memories of when he was first training the boy flooded his mind. He recited the tenants of their Brotherhood to his student while teaching him hand to hand combat. 'Never harm the innocent'; that was the first tenant he had beat into his student's head.

"No," as he sheathed his blade.

He walked over to his student and placed his hand on his shoulder. The boy looked over to his shoulder as he felt the slight pressure on it. Altair could see into the boy's eyes, despite his head being covered by the hood.

"I'm unsure if you can hear me, but I do not blame you for my death;" in a sincere tone "you were deceived, just as I was over three years ago. I have but one request, that you watch after my son and teach him the Creed and ways of the Brotherhood."

"I give you my word Master Altair;" as he looked back to his master's body "I will teach your son everything I can about being an assassin and I will beg for his forgiveness for taking you from him."

Altair let go of his student and looked back to the old man that stopped him from ripping out his 'Chain of Fate'. With a simple nod, he let the man know he was ready to move on to the next life; be it heaven or hell. Neither would surprise him for the sins he had committed, but at the same time he would be surprised. All his life he has killed to protect the innocent; while killing was a sin, he was told it was for the good of mankind. 'Kill one to save many', those were the words of Al Mualim; so they were hard to believe now.

"What is it you assassin's say; Requiescat in pace?" the old man asked as the top of his cane disintegrated and revealed a hilt.

"Yes;" Altair answered "and thank you for the final right" as he closed his eyes.

The old man drew his sword and poked the hooded man's forehead with the butt of the hilt. The master assassin suddenly felt warm all over as his body began to glow. He could feel his legs begin to disintegrate as the warm feeling increased; eventually, his entire body disintegrated. When he opened his eyes again, he expected to see the fires of hell around him but instead saw buildings that had unusual architecture to him. They were small, with sliding doors rather than ones that swung, the roofs were more slanted than he was used to seeing, and there were spheres hanging from ropes on the corners.

"This is the Soul Society huh?" with a chuckle "I wonder how my life will be here" as he rubbed his chest.

His eyes widened as he noticed the arrow that was in his chest was now gone and the wound was healed. He walked to the river next to the street he was on and saw all the arrows were missing and his wounds healed. A smile grew on his face as he saw that he was still wearing his assassin attire; maybe he could continue his work here.


	2. Chapter 2

Altair jumped from the higher roof onto the lower one only ten feet away and rolled as he drew a throwing knife to take out the guard he spotted. It has been ten years since he was betrayed and killed, and in that time he had learned much about the Soul Society. The layout of the area was similar to that of the Holy Lands; in the center was the Seireitei, which he considered the equivalent to the land in the center of the Kingdom that was often fought over. Recently, the Seireitei had massive walls put up around it to keep those in the surrounding areas out; from what he's heard the walls are made of a unique stone that drains reiatsu.

He learned about reiatsu after two days of being in the Soul Society when he felt a hunger in his stomach. When he asked about it, many said that he should go to the 'Shinigami Academy' because hunger was a sign of having higher reiatsu. It took him about two months, but eventually he learned how to conceal his reiatsu from his targets; making it much easier for him to sneak around guards, closer to his target, and disappear. He decided against joining the Academy because there was still too much work that needed to be done in the Rukongai; there were still corrupt individuals tormenting the innocent.

There are four Rukongai districts surrounding the Seireitei; one in each direction. Each main district had eighty sub-districts; numbered from lowest to highest by crime rate. He was currently in the thirty-ninth Western district on his way to kill a target. Many people have been disappearing from the seventieth district; after he investigated that and killed the one responsible, he found that this man was the one that employed him. He only prayed to God that this was going to be the end of the line for this slave trade; there were several women that were kidnapped, so he could only imagine what they were being forced to do. He quickened his pace and killed a guard with his Extension Blade by putting it through the base of his skull; the man fell limp to the ground and he noticed the katana at his side.

Lately his targets have had men with katana as guards; when he looked into the weapons, he discovered that they are called zanpakuto. Each one was unique to the wielder in both design and abilities. He heard a rumor that said the blades can change shape and abilities by saying the weapon's name; however, he highly doubted that. He grabbed a pole that was sticking out of a wall and flipped up to the higher roof. The coast was clear for now, so he decided to take a look around and see what his opposition was. When he activated his Eagle Vision, he saw that there were seven guards close by, five further away, and three forcing two women into an alley way while a fourth stood at the entrance.

He quickly ran across the roof tops towards the alley; his focus was now on protecting the two women that had been forced into the alley. Even before he made his very first kill after a year of being in the Soul Society, he upheld the Creed of the Brotherhood. A throwing knife left his hand at lightning speed and went into one man's neck; he jumped down and slashed the second with his short sword before stabbing the third with his Extension Blade through the jugular before he could even react to his presence.

"You are safe now" Altair said to the women.

"You are real" one said with wide eyes.

"Yes," he said as he kneeled down in front of them in an attempt to comfort them "I am going to kill the last man; as soon as you see me grab him, go home and stay there. Be sure to let all your friends know," as he stood up "that after tonight, the streets will be safe to walk again."

His footsteps were silent, and his reiatsu was completely hidden as he approached the fourth man. He grabbed the man quickly, covering his mouth as he did so to keep him from calling for help, and yanked him into the shadows of the alley. The two women quickly left the alley and hurried back to their homes without drawing attention to themselves.

"This is your one and only chance to save your life;" he said as he held the struggling man "tell me what you know about Tamik Wasu."

"He is cautious, but doesn't believe in the stories peasants tell;" the man said in fear "so he does not believe in you. He can become paranoid easily, so do not hesitate to strike him."

"I already knew this;" Altair said as he tightened his grip on the man "your life will be forfeited if you have nothing to tell me I did not know already."

"There will be a gap in his protection!" the man said quickly.

This caught Altair's attention; it was the first time he heard anything about a gap in his protection. Should he make time his attack just right, it would mean fewer people he would have to fight and kill. This opening will make it much easier to take out his target.

"He is cheap and refuses to buy his guards weapons and armor if they do not already have it. So many guards share uniforms and weapons; it takes them five to ten minutes to exchange everything."

"Very well" as he released the man "if I ever see you assisting in the harm of an innocent, your life will be forfeited automatically. I will not give you a chance to redeem yourself."

The man didn't say anything else as he ran away from the legendary Howaitogosuto as he has heard him addressed as; when he looked into the latter name he found it meant 'White Ghost' in Japanese. Altair never liked that title, but it was one that now put fear in countless corrupted people. The title came by his ability to appear and disappear like a ghost; no one has ever come close to capturing him, nor have they found proof that he exists other than by the individuals he publicly kills. The master assassin jumped back onto the roof and continued towards his target; when he saw the guards start to head back to the noble's home, he quickened his pace so he could take advantage of the gap that would be there. He pushed himself up the wall of another building; he didn't have much time left, but that wasn't going to stop him.

He cautiously looked into the window of the room of Tamik Wasu and saw the man looking over papers. The corrupt noble seemed to be furious that his supplier was murdered. Altair quietly pushed the window open and crept into the room; his Extension Blade already prepped to go through the man's chest. He grabbed the man by his mouth and slammed his blade through his chest.

"You can no longer sell the poor into slavery" Altair said as he gently set the man on the ground.

"Sell them into slavery?" with a confused tone "I saved them by giving them a way of life, a way to make money, and a way out of that crime ridden sub-district. They were in constant threat of being killed, or dying in that place; no one did anything to try to help them. What I did saved them."

"You may believe your excuse, but I do not;" as he placed the man's head on the ground "Rest in Peace" before he shut the man's eyelids.

He sensed a reiatsu in the ceiling and quickly jumped out the window and onto the roof of another building. As he sprinted away from the man he just killed, he could sense that the owner of the reiatsu he sensed in the room was pursuing him. He had to lose his pursuers before he could return to his safe house. Taking a hard left, he jumped into a large party that was going on in the middle of the street while he hid his holster for his short sword and throwing knives. He quickly took off his hood and hid it in his robe before joining in on a conversation about various nobles; one of them being the man he just killed.

"We don't have to worry about this 'Howaitogosuto' attacking the Shihoin Clan."

"Why would you say that?" Altair asked, now curious.

He had heard very little about this Clan in the past ten years and wanted to begin gathering information should he need it at a later time. There was no telling when a Clan head could become corrupt, or which clan it will be in. Information was an assassin's greatest weapon.

"Even if the clan head was corrupt," the person replied "the Shihoin Clan is protected by the Onmitsukido; who are said to be the best body guards and assassins known."

"That's a lie; I heard that the Howaitogosuto killed thirty men on his own without being detected;" another man said "then he killed the head of the Kasumioji Clan and got away like a hawk in the night sky."

"It is getting late" Altair said with a small bow "and I must retire for the night. Enjoy the rest of the party."

-The next morning in the Shihoin Clan manor-

"He is real!" a woman argued with her fellow servant.

"No he isn't!" an older servant argued back "The Howaitogosuto is only a myth that the poor created to put fear into the nobles so that they will be treated better. There has been nothing to prove otherwise!"

"What about when he killed the head of the Kasumioji Clan while he was in a meeting with the Elders? Or even this;" as she pulled a throwing knife out of her kimono.

The blade was flat with no guard and had what looked to be an eagle head on the very end of where the weapon would be held. What she assumed was the hilt had engravings that looked to resemble feathers that went from the eagle head to where the edge of the blade began.

"Where did you…" in disbelief.

"Last night" she began her story "I was out with my friend when we were attacked by four men. They forced us into an alley, one of them stayed by the entrance to keep an eye for anyone that might try to stop them, and started touching us;" sadness visible in her eyes "then out of nowhere, one of them fell dead to the ground. Before the others realized what had happened, the Howaitogosuto slit another's throat and stabbed the neck with a weapon that was strapped to his wrist. He told us we were safe and what he was going to do to allow us to escape. He grabbed the fourth man and we ran back home; I saw this in one of the men's neck and took it so I would have proof he is real."

"I never would've thought the Howaitogosuto to be real;" they heard from the door.

"Shihoin-sama!" as they both bowed.

The woman had chocolate colored skin, yellow eyes, purple hair and wore a ceremonial style pink kimono that had flower petals on it (no it's not Yoruichi). It was the tradition of the Shihoin Clan to have a female Head; this dated back many generations to before official records were kept.

"I heard you two arguing again and wanted to see what it was about this time;" as the woman walked towards them "Howaitogosuto seems to have left an impression on you" looking at the woman holding the throwing knife "but do not let your inflation interfere with you working;" as she took the knife and examined it by balancing it on her index finger "it's perfectly balanced, obviously crafted by a master smith. It's made of folded steel, making it lighter;" she threw it into the wall "it is a very interesting piece of weaponry. I will be sure to find out who makes these" as she walked out.

-Seireitei-

Yamamoto sat at his desk and drank a cup of tea before two of his students burst through his office doors.

"Yamamoto-sensei" the white haired one said "Tamik Wasu has just been assassinated!"

"You say that as if you were not aware of the team I sent to assassinate him."

"It was the Howaitogosuto that got him sir;" he continued "before our team could apprehend him, he jumped out of the window and vanished. All that they managed to get on him was his apparel; a white robe that had a hood that resembled a hawk's beak, a short sword attached to his back by an odd leather holster, several pockets for throwing knives, and a guard on his left arm that had a blade attached to the underside."

"It seems that he is continuing his work here in the Soul Society" Yamamoto said with a slight smile.

"Please elaborate; Yama-ja-Nii" the brown haired one asked.

"Ten years ago," Yamamoto explained "I preformed a Konso on someone that fits that description. He was murdered while trying to assassinate someone due to the betrayal of someone he trusted. I feel it is only a matter of time before we see this man in person" as he took another drink of his tea.

-One hundred years later-

The master assassin sat outside his small hut and inhaled the cool morning air. It was just another morning of the many he has had in this afterlife; the air was cool, crisp, and smelled like fresh morning dew. His appearance hadn't changed much in his hundred and ten years of being in the Soul Society; his hair was a little longer and covering the tops of his ears, and occasionally he'd grow his facial hair out for an assassination so he would be harder to recognize when he shaved afterwards. Everything around his hut was quiet and peaceful with only the occasional children playing around the land he built his hut on. It was on mornings like this that he often wished he could've survived being betrayed so he could have spent time with his wife and son.

Today was going to be a slow day, since he just assassinated another corrupt politic in the southern districts of the Rukongai. He would lay low for a few days after making a kill to allow time for those pursuing him to lose his trail. After dawning his civilian clothing, he went for a walk through the twentieth northern district. This was one of the several huts he had made to hide out in over the past century; it was also the one that was closest to the Shihoin Clan mansion. About ten years ago, he found information that suggested an assassination attempt on the next heiress of the clan. Since he has yet to hear anything about the Clan leader conceiving a child, he decided to make a hut only a mile from the manor walls. This way, when it is announced that the current head is pregnant he can have a watchful position over her.

He began his morning workouts like normal; swordsmanship practice. After he first became known as Howaitogosuto, he found that many woodworkers made training swords that were the same shape as his short sword. This benefited him; he could practice without having to use his real blade and drawing attention to himself. Subtlety was something he learned after becoming the Grand Master of the Brotherhood; not only did it keep him safe, but his Brothers and Sisters as well. He performed a side swipe defensive attack before he shunpo to a new offensive cut that was aimed at the same level of someone's throat.

He learned about shunpo while on a mission to assassinate a slaver in the Eightieth Southern District roughly seventy years ago. It was the hardest target to kill since he died and came to the Soul Society. The man had acquired scrolls from the Seireitei before they constructed the wall and learned the secret of the technique; after the slaver could no longer use the scroll, he took it and learned the secret as well. The skill has proven to be most useful one his missions. The last target had several men that could use the ability, which might have cost him his life had he not known how to use it as well. It took him four years to fully understand the skill and know how to use it properly, but he still needed someone to teach him.

This training continued for an hour before he moved on to his free climbing skills. He had a course set up in the trees that surrounded his hut; using branches to get up to the tree tops and then jumping from branch to branch while using poles he set into the trunks to swing when he needed. This was his most basic course; the set up was similar to the one he learned on, only larger in scale.

Another hour later, he had completed his workout for the day and decided to go on a walk to visit the blacksmith that made his knives. He and the smith had a good arrangement going; the smith would make the throwing knives for him at a discounted price since he bought them in massive bulk, and he just needed to make sure no one knew where the blades came from. It was an easy deal to keep since every person that had met the folded steel had been greeted by the edge and didn't live to talk about it. He moved the drape that was over the entrance over and walked into the forge.

"Altair; safety and peace my friend" the smith greeted with a smile.

"Safety and peace to you as well;" the assassin said with a small bow "I used the last of the throwing knives last night and I need more."

The two masters of their own arts had a strong respect for one another; Altair because he knew that it took great skill to forge a proper blade, and the smith because the prior had saved many lives. While some argue that a blacksmith is a warmonger, it wasn't his place to tell others what to use the weapons he makes for; only how to take care of them. This was something Altair agreed with him on.

"Have you considered joining the Shinigami Academy?" the smith asked as he pressed a hidden button and revealed a cabinet full of throwing knives.

The cabinet had hundreds of knives hanging on small hooks and left little empty space. Each blade was perfectly flat and made with master hands; the edges were sharp enough to cut through flesh without someone realizing it.

"There is too much work that needs to be done out here for me to be sitting in a room getting lectured by someone I could defeat with ease."

That couldn't be any further from the truth. Altair had a small run-in with a shinigami in the past; he had long blond hair and a rather relaxed posture. The assassin couldn't remember how he introduced himself; it was irritating that the shinigami tried to explain his name in what seemed to be a riddle, but he insisted it was just backwards. That small skirmish lasted a few minutes before Altair disappeared by concealing his reiatsu and vanishing with shunpo.

"I suppose you're right;" as he put the knives on a cloth, rolled the cloth up, and tied it at the ends to ensure that the blades didn't fall out "a few more things before you leave. I've been asked to examine one of the earlier throwing knives I made for you; it seems that someone is very curious about you. I told them that I've only seen work like that done in the Northern Districts, but I'm not sure if they believed me."

"I will be more careful in the future; I'm sorry that this could expose you as my supplier."

"It was the Shihoin Clan that asked me about it;" remembering how he was told the story "the Onmitsukido member that asked me about it said that the Howaitogosuto saved a servant a century ago. Apparently she had taken the blade from the neck of someone he killed."

Altair remembered that night; he was on the way to kill the head of a slave trade organization. He had thought that that rescue was just a footnote; now it turns out to have led someone to his weapons maker. Normally he would've been concerned, but since it took this Shihoin Clan a century to locate the smith he wasn't worried.

"It took them a century to even catch a hint of a trail," Altair shook his head as he headed for the exit after paying the smith "I believe that you're perfectly safe."

"It is not my safety that I am worried about;" he sighed "please watch out for yourself. One last thing;" causing Altair to stop at the exit "Lady Shihoin has conceived a child."

"Then I have only eight months to figure out who is plotting against the Shihoin Family" as he left the forge.

-Eight months later-

The master assassin jumped from his view point and landed on the roof directly below him; in the past eight months he had done everything he could to try to find out who was plotting against the Shihoin Family. He couldn't find anything though; whoever was calling the shots had been extremely careful to cover their tracks. What he did find out though, was that the one that was going to assassinate the next heiress had infiltrated the Shihoin household long ago and had been waiting patiently to strike. Picking up his pace, he jumped from the roof to the two guards and knocked them out as he kept moving.

The head of the Shihoin Family had gone into labor an hour ago, so he didn't have time to fool around with the members of Onmitsukido. He _had_ to get to the head of the Family and protect the child she was about to bring into the world. He knew who he had to kill to protect the child, unfortunately it was one of the head's most trusted bodyguards; only second to a woman called Sui-Feng, who was the head's personal bodyguard.

'_I must see beneath the beneath;'_ he thought as he jumped to a new roof _'what am I missing? How can someone keep themselves so concealed even after I spent almost a year looking for them? I'll have my answer when I get my hands on Multief.'_

As he grabbed a window seal and started crawling up the wall, an alarm was sounded. His element of surprise had been ruined and his time was very limited. This was something he was hoping to avoid; with the alarm going off, Multief was most likely going to speed up his assassination. Throwing himself through the window, he grabbed the guard and slammed his head into the wall before tossing his unconscious body to the ground. There was no need for him to kill any Onmitsukido members when his target was a traitor to them.

Rounding a corner, he saw the door he needed to go through at the end of the hall. Going in an all out sprint, he kicked through the paper door and was immediately surrounded by Onmitsukido. He saw a screen with the silhouette of a woman on the other side putting a robe on; in a matter of seconds, he was blocking attacks from the skilled guards. As he blocked a punch and ducked below a kick, he saw why they were often called the best; before he could draw his blade, he took a kick to the chest that knocked him into the wall. Without having time to think, the Onmitsukido had grabbed his arms, turned them to an uncomfortable position and kept him on his knees as others removed his knives and sword; his hidden blade had become even better hidden over the century.

"Why is it you wish to assassinate my child?" the woman said as she stepped out from behind the screen.

Her brown colored skin reminded him of the ones that Templars often forced into slavery; her hair was almost like silk, only just out of reach because of the birthing process she had just finished had her hair unkempt and untamed. He could see that while the woman was strong, the labor she had just gone through took its toll on her; her eyes showed she was drained of energy and couldn't move fast otherwise she'd collapse to the ground.

"Lady Shihoin," Altair said "you must believe me when I tell you I am not the assassin that wishes your child harm. She is an innocent and it goes against my Creed."

"Then it is me you wish to kill?"

"No, ugh" as a guard twisted his arm.

"Show respect to Shihoin-sama;" the guard said.

"The one that wishes to kill your child is Multief;" he told her "where is he?"

"Protecting my daughter and husband, along with Sui-Feng, from you;" she said cooly.

Altair flicked his left wrist and extended his hidden blade into a guard's kidney. Once the guard let go, he did a flip and kicked the second across the face before taking off down the hall. He didn't have time to waste; he needed to kill Multief before it was too late.

-Sui-Feng-

The personal bodyguard of the Head of the Shihoin Clan stood ready as she listened to the alarms clang throughout the compound. Whomever this person was had to be extremely good to be able to get this far into the compound before the alarm started. Her eyes turned to the worried husband of her Lady; almost everyone on the compound knew that this day would come, the day that an assassin would try to kill the new born Yoruichi.

"It's a little too quiet out there;" Multief said "you'd think that it'd be louder considering the assassin. Makes you wonder if the others managed to defeat him."

"Indeed it does;" she replied "just who is this assassin; do you have any ideas?"

A cry of pain came from Lord Shihoin and she turned around to see a blade through his heart; the owner of the blade being Multief. Before she could do anything, that same blade slit her throat just before her traitorous partner kicked her to the ground. She lay on the ground, drowning in her own blood as the darkness in her 'partner's' eyes came to light.

"Actually yes;" with a chuckle "it's me. Now to finish the job;" as he turned his attention to the new born in the small crib behind him.

Pulling a knife from his sash, he lifted it over the youngest member of the Shihoin clan; the sleeping infant oblivious to the world around it still. Multief held no grief or regret in his heart as he brought the small blade down in an attempt to slay the young Yoruichi. A grunt of pain was heard as a hand was thrown in the way at what appeared to be the last moment. Multief turned to see a man in a white robe holding his hand inches away from the infant's head giving him a glare that threatened the most painful death.

Altair threw the man away from the crib with a heavy grunt. The man dressed in white charged towards the traitor to the Onmitsukido with intent to run him through with the small blade attached to his wrist, only to be parried by the knife that the traitor attempted to use on the child. Grabbing the man's wrist, Altair spun around and threw him to the ground as he tried to remove the sword from Multief's other hand; only to have his arm cut at the biceps rendering the arm useless in the fight. With his right arm hanging uselessly at his side, he did his best to back the man away from the young Shihoin. This was proving to be far more difficult thanks to the Onmitsukido that removed his swords and knives earlier; his lack of weaponry and availability of both arms caused him to take several cuts across his chest that would prove fatal if they were any deeper.

After taking a powerful kick to the chest, Altair was backed against a wall and was open for a killing strike; only to watch in horror as Multief ran to the crib, grab the child and make a break for the window. Putting all his strength into his legs, he took off after Multief and tackled him right as he reached the window; causing both to fall through it. Using his hidden blade, he punctured the traitor's heart and grabbed the Shihoin infant just before he pushed off the corpse and threw his heavily injured arm up and barely grabbing a hold of a window ledge.

"Rest in peace;" he said to the falling form of Multief.

A crying was heard from the bundle in his arm; when he looked at it, he saw the new born had woken up.

"Do not cry young one;" he said softly "you are safe."

He felt hands grab his arm just before he was pulled up and into the window. Onmitsukido grabbed a hold of his leather harness and heaved him and the infant through the window to safety. None of the black dressed men approached him as he stood up with Yoruichi still crying in his arm instead, they kneeled to him; they had just witness the man save their new heiress and had their respect. The older Shihoin came through the door and watched as the man that just saved her daughter walked towards her and returned the new born to her.

"Take me back upstairs;" he said to one of the Onmitsukido guards "there is something I must do."

The guard just nodded and led him back to the room the man had jumped from. This caught everyone's attention and they followed out of pure curiosity; even Lady Shihoin's. When he got into the room he looked at the two deceased people that were lying on the floor in near grotesque positions. Kneeling next to the man's corpse, he carefully flipped him over with his one good arm and closed his eyes; doing the same to the woman's corpse.

"The heiress to the Shihoin Family is safe; please rest in peace" he said as he stood back up.

"Thank you;" he heard Lady Shihoin say to him "for everything you've done tonight. Please stay here until your injuries recover fully."

After a few days of receiving treatment from the top medical member of the Onmitsukido, he was able to use his right arm properly again and only had a small scar to show that he even had the wound. He learned that Sui-Feng had a child a few years ago that she left behind; he felt a sting in him. That sounded very familiar, she had been betrayed just as he had been, she lost her life because of that betrayal just as he did, and left a child behind just as he did. The irony made him sigh; had he been faster the one called Sui-Feng would still be alive and able to take care of her child.

"I wish to ask you to become Yoruichi's personal bodyguard and mentor;" Lady Shihoin said to him "I am aware of your identity as the Howaitogosuto and will understand if you decline my offer."

The head of the Shihoin Clan had thought about making this offer for the past few days and decided it was best. She learned a lot about the man that identified himself as Altair Ibn-La'Ahad; mainly that he could remember his life when he walked amongst the living. This amazed her since it wasn't known if anyone could remember their life amongst the living; either they could, or Altair had an extraordinary willpower that allowed him to remember.

The main thing that intrigued her was that he referred to this place as 'pre-Babylonian'. When she asked him why, he said that while there were many words that came from other languages, there was a universal tongue that was spoken throughout the Soul Society. The words he heard were often in his own language; with the only exception being things such as titles and names, those seemed to keep to the language they derived from. He also didn't realize that he had a zanpakuto strapped to his back for the past hundred and ten years. This nearly caused her to do something completely unlady-like, face plant to the ground.

"Whoever it is that is plotting against your Family is still out there;" Altair said as he looked at the sleeping Yoruichi "my best hope in discovering who that is, is to stay by Lady Yoruichi's side and hope to capture another would be assassin and interrogate them."

"Is that a 'yes'?"

"Yes Lady Shihoin;" he said as he pulled his hood up "my skills are at Lady Yoruichi's service."


	3. Author's note

I will be rewriting this story to have it flow better. Sorry for the inconvenience. If someone wants to pick up this version just PM me


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